Cardinal said he shared the grief of the bereaved families.

Cardinal George Alancherry, head of the Syro Malabar Church, has said he shared the grief of families of Indian fishermen gunned down by Italian mariners last month.

The prelate, who became a cardinal on February 18, arrived at the Kochi International Airport on Saturday amid high security after some groups wanted that they would welcome the Church leader with black flags to protest his alleged statements to the Vatican news agency, Fides, on the shooting incident.

The cardinal told waiting reporters at the airport that he did not want to prolong the controversy further as the news agency had withdrawn its report.

He said he regretted the pain the report has caused and that he shared the grief of the bereaved families.

Two mariners guarding the Italian vessel Enrica Lexie shot dead two fishermen on February 15 allegedly mistaking them for pirates. The Italians are now in police custody in Kerala.